Nigeria Presidency Apologises for Errors in Appointments List Amid Regional Imbalance Claims

The Nigerian presidency has issued an apology for errors contained in a list of appointments made by President Bola Tinubu since he assumed office in May 2023.

The list was initially released by the President’s Special Adviser on Media and Public Communication, Sunday Dare, on Wednesday. Its aim was to counter allegations, notably made by Senator Ali Ndume, a lawmaker from Borno South, that President Tinubu’s appointments had disproportionately favoured certain regions, violating the country’s federal character principle.

Senator Ndume, a member of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), had recently accused the President in a television interview of regional bias in his appointments, a claim the presidency had previously denied.

The list released by Mr. Dare indicated the geographical distribution of President Tinubu’s appointees, stating that 29 were from the South West (the President’s home region), 35 from the North West, 22 from the South-South, 16 from the South East, 25 from the North Central, and 24 from the North East.

However, critics quickly pointed out significant omissions from the list, including the name of the President’s influential Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, who is also from the South West, and the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service, Kemi Nandap.

These omissions further fuelled the narrative of regional imbalance, particularly highlighting the relatively low number of appointees from the South East region.

As the document generated considerable debate on social media, Mr. Dare took to his X (formerly Twitter) account on Thursday to acknowledge the errors and issue an apology. He promised that an updated list would be provided at a later time.

However, the presidential spokesman did not offer an explanation for the specific omissions, including why Mr. Gbajabiamila’s name was left off the initial list.

The controversy underscores the sensitive issue of regional representation in Nigerian government appointments, a principle enshrined in the constitution to ensure equitable distribution of power and resources across the country’s diverse geopolitical zones.